Black stork Pakistani special forces. Stork - description, types, photos, where the bird lives, what it eats

"Black Stork" or "Black Storks" - sabotage and fighter elite squad Afghan Mujahideen, whose leader was, according to different sources, Khattab, Hekmatyar and Osama bin Laden. According to other sources, Pakistani special forces. According to the third version, “Black Storks” (Chokhatlor) are those people who committed a crime before Allah: they killed, stole, etc. They had to atone for their guilt before Allah only with the blood of infidels. There was information that among the “storks” there were people of European appearance with punk hairstyles who traveled in Isuzu jeeps. Each “stork” simultaneously performed the duties of a radio operator, sniper, miner, etc. In addition, the fighters of this special unit, created to carry out sabotage operations, owned almost all types of small arms.

Addition

"Black Stork" - a special forces unit, was created during the Afghan War of 1979-1989. by a number of intelligence services of Pakistan and other interested countries from among the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign mercenaries. The members of the Black Stork were well-trained military specialists, professionally proficient in various types of weapons, communications equipment, and knowledge of topographic maps. They knew the terrain well and were unpretentious in everyday life. They were based mainly in the hard-to-reach provinces of the Afghan highlands bordering Pakistan and Iran, at the bases and fortified areas of the Afghan Mujahideen. They took an active part in organizing ambushes on units of the Soviet troops. A number of such clashes became a difficult page in the history of the Afghan war.

Death of the Maravar company in the province of Kunar of the 1st company of the 334th special forces detachment of the 15th ObrSpN GRU General Staff - April 21, 1985

Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak in Kunar province - May 25, 1985.

Battle at height 3234 near the village of Alikheil, Paktia province

The “Black Stork” detachment was equipped with a special black uniform, with stripes of this special. divisions. - With rare exceptions (in the person of instructors), all members of the Black Stork were adherents of fundamental Islam. Mostly natives Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region China. Very often, during an intense battle, flaunting their own fearlessness, the “Black Storks” stood up to their full height in order to fire a shell from a grenade launcher, or fire a long burst. With this action, as well as the reading over a horn loudspeaker during the battle, suras from the holy book “Storks” hoped to demoralize - break morale Soviet soldiers. Special databases for vocational training The Black Storks were located mainly in Pakistan and Iran.

Throughout your stay limited contingent V Democratic Republic Afghanistan has not recorded a single documented case of the destruction of the Black Stork.

Events related to “black storks”

1985, May - Kunar province, Kunar operation, Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak.

According to the third version, “Black Storks” ( Chohatlor) are military units made up of criminals, from the point of view of the Muslim religion. [ ] [[K:Wikipedia:Articles without sources (country: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#property" was not found. )]][[K:Wikipedia:Articles without sources (country: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#property" was not found. )]]

One of the versions

The members of the Black Stork were well-trained military specialists, professionally proficient in various types of weapons, communications equipment, and knowledge of topographic maps. They knew the terrain well and were unpretentious in everyday life. Each “stork” simultaneously performed the duties of a radio operator, sniper, miner, etc. In addition, the fighters of this special unit, created for sabotage operations, owned almost all types of small arms. [[K:Wikipedia:Articles without sources (country: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#property" was not found. )]][[K:Wikipedia:Articles without sources (country: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#property" was not found. )]][[K:Wikipedia:Articles without sources (country: Lua error: callParserFunction: function "#property" was not found. )]]

The detachments were located in the provinces of the Afghan highlands bordering Pakistan and Iran, at the bases and fortified areas of the Afghan Mujahideen.

They took an active part in organizing ambushes on units of Soviet troops:

• The battle near the village of Khara - the death of the 1st battalion of the 66th Motorized Rifle Brigade in the Khara gorge, Kunar province - May 11, 1980.
• Death of the Maravar company in the province of Kunar of the 1st company of the 334th special forces detachment of the 15th ObrSpN GRU General Staff - April 21, 1985
• Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak in Kunar province - May 25, 1985.
• Capture of the fortified area "Kokari - Sharshari" Operation "Trap" Herat province - August 18-26, 1986
• Battle at height 3234 near the village of Alikheil, Paktia province

Alternative opinion

Units and formations of OKSVA in the period from 1980-1988. in this territorial zone, various scales were carried out fighting to eliminate the infrastructure of numerous armed formations of the Mujahideen (in particular during the Kunar combined arms operations), to capture fortified areas, strongholds and transshipment bases.

Pakistani border guards, who at that time wore black uniforms, deployed their outposts as close as possible to the site of these military events and were in constant combat readiness. Professionally trained, they acted harmoniously, clearly interacting with the assigned special occasions army artillery. Often, in cases where Soviet units carried out military operations on the territory bordering Pakistan, the neighboring side assessed the current situation as an external threat to its national security. In a number of cases, the situation was assessed as an actual violation of the state border of the Islamic Republic of Iran by foreign troops (OKSVA) based on Afghan territory, and then the now mythical “Black Storks” - Pakistani soldiers in the notorious black uniform - were used. The position of the Pakistani side was based on the following: the zone of combat operations between the Afghan Mujahideen and OKSVA units, which was nomadic in nature, on the military maps of neighboring states has significant differences, shifted deep into the territory of the IPA, thereby providing for the legal, in accordance with international law, use of military force by the Pakistani side.

Later, starting from 1985, in order to avoid an international scandal in connection with cases of border clashes with in regular units Islamic Republic Pakistan, the OKSVA command chose to avoid conducting active combat operations in the 5-kilometer zone of the Afghan-Pakistani border. For various reasons, this prohibition was sometimes violated by Soviet units.

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An excerpt characterizing the Black Stork (squad)

So, a week later, in all its dark “grandeur,” the “holy” city of Rome appeared before me... Apart from the beauty of the palaces, cathedrals and churches, the city was very gloomy and surprisingly dirty. And for me it was also the city of my death, since I knew that there was no escape from Caraffa here.
I was put in some very big palace, without explaining anything, without saying a word. I was served by a mute maid, which, again, did not bode well. But one circumstance still inspired a “ghostly” hope - I was settled in a castle, and not directly in a cell for the accused, which could mean that I would be given the opportunity to defend myself.
I was wrong...
The next morning Caraffa appeared. He was fresh and very happy, which, unfortunately, did not bode well for me.
By sitting down in a chair right in front of me, but without asking permission, Caraffa made it clear that he was the master here, and I was just a defendant in a beautiful cage...

Among the special forces of third world countries, one of the most famous is the Pakistani army special forces Special Services Group (SSG) - Group special operations. Its fighters are also known under the unofficial names of “black storks” and “speckled berets”. Appearing in the 1950s, special forces participated in all armed conflicts in Pakistan, and today they are actively involved in counter-terrorism operations.

Birth of the SSG

In the 1950s, thinking about a new war with India for the return of “their Alsace and Lorraine” - Kashmir, the Pakistani military carefully studied the experience of contemporary guerrilla wars in Algeria and Vietnam. As a result, they came to the idea of ​​​​the need to create a special unit designed to conduct cross-border raids in war conditions, as well as to organize guerrilla warfare on enemy, that is, Indian, territory.

Banner of the 19th Battalion Baloch Regiment, 1964

In 1954, the 312th Garrison Company, led by Captain Muhammad Salman Khan, was the first to be retrained for special operations. Two years later, the company was merged with the 17th Battalion Baloch Regiment, forming a separate special operations unit called the 19th Battalion Baloch Regiment. The battalion was stationed in Cherat, a small town in the mountains of Khyber Patunkhwa province, fifty kilometers from Peshawar. In 1959, the unit was headed by Lieutenant Colonel Abubakr Osman Mitha, a muhajir (immigrant) from India who fought in Burma during World War II. It was he who became the “father of Pakistani special forces.”

In the early 1960s, American instructors from the CIA and the Green Berets also participated in the creation of special forces: some Pakistani officers were trained at Fort Bragg and Fort Benning. By 1965, Pakistani special forces numbered about 700 people in their ranks, divided into six separate companies. Each of them specialized in a certain type of special operations.

Major General Mitha - "Father of Pakistani Special Forces", 1970s

1965: first fight and first failure

In August 1965, Pakistani special forces were renamed the Special Operations Group, and soon tried their hand in combat.

The SSG's main front was in the north. After the overthrow of the royal regime in Afghanistan in 1973, NGO officers and sergeants were recruited by the ISI to train Afghan mujahideen rebels. After the Soviet invasion in 1979 this program was expanded, and the most “promising” of the Afghans underwent a full course of training at the SSG training center in Cherat.

Fighters SSG on the Afghan border, today

Contrary to what is sometimes written in domestic sources and on Pakistani forums, there is no reliable information about the participation of SSG operatives in battles against Soviet troops in Afghanistan. However, special forces officers served as advisers to Taliban units fighting against the Northern Alliance in the 1990s. They were completely withdrawn from Afghanistan in November 2001, after the start of the American military operation.

The SSG continued to be involved in operations against India. The special forces company is permanently part of the Siachen Brigade of the Pakistan Army. In 1986, it was the special forces who established and then defended the “Qaid” post on the Saltoro ridge, the battles for which became the brightest page of the Siachen conflict.

Since the late 1980s, SSG instructors have trained Kashmiri Mujahideen to deploy guerrilla warfare against India in Kashmir.

Fighter SSG , our days

And in February 1999, SSG officers commanded detachments of the Northern Light Infantry that captured the heights in the Kashmir sector of Kargil, which led to the last "hot" to date. armed conflict India and Pakistan - Kargil War.

Against terrorism

In 1980, a separate counter-terrorist company "Zarrar" was created as part of the SSG under the command of Major Faiz Akbar Shah and Captain Sajjad Ali Shah, who completed the courses of the American Navy SEALs. The following year, the company had to fight for the first time - a group of Sikh separatists hijacked an Indian Boeing to Lahore. Pakistani commandos managed to sneak on board unnoticed and neutralize all the hijackers, without casualties on the part of the hostages.

Fighters SSG parachuted from a helicopter, our days

A big story happened in September 1986. Palestinian terrorists from the Abu Nidal organization, associated with the Libyan regime, hijacked a Boeing 747 of the American company Pan Am, flying from Bombay to New York, on a stopover while refueling in Karachi. The unprepared assault on the plane, hastily launched after the hijackers began killing the hostages, led to the death of 43 passengers.

The operations to liberate those captured by Afghan militants were more successful. school bus in 1994 and a Pakistan Domestic Airlines aircraft in 1998.

Special forces in the 21st century

In June 2003, a reorganization plan for SSG was adopted to triple its size within 10 years. The following year the 4th battalion was formed, as well as the headquarters of the division and two separate brigades. This expansion was dictated by the deteriorating security situation in Pakistan after the start of the “war on terror”.

SSG at the parade, our days

The SSG is actively involved in military operations in the “tribal zone” against the local Taliban, performing reconnaissance and strike functions. According to unconfirmed reports, during one of the operations in April 2009, soldiers of the 1st SSG Yildirim battalion carried out a night parachute landing on enemy territory.

Special forces also have to deal with countering terrorist attacks. In July 2007, SSG fighters stormed the Lal Masjid mosque in Islamabad, which had been converted into an Islamist stronghold. Ten special forces were killed, led by Lieutenant Colonel Harun Islam, commander of the SSG Zarrar counter-terrorism battalion, who commanded the assault. In 2009, SSG fighters liberated the Pakistani army headquarters in Rawalpindi and the police academy in Lahore, captured by terrorists, and in December 2014, a school in Peshawar.

B oytsy SSG , our days

All this has turned the SSG into one of the targets of the Islamists. Special forces have been victims of explosions, the largest of which, a suicide bombing at an SSG base in September 2007, killed 22 special forces. In November 2008, a sniper shot and killed SSG commander Major General Amir Faizal Alavi in ​​Islamabad.

SSG members are charged with guarding Pakistan's nuclear weapons. Special forces also continue to be involved in cross-border operations in Kashmir.

Current situation

IN present moment The SSG has about 7,000 troops in nine battalions. Each battalion consists of four companies, the companies are divided into teams of ten special forces.

The main base of SSG is at Attock and the training center is at Cherat. To enter the special forces, military personnel must serve in the army for at least two years. Every year, about 120 officers and more than 3 thousand lower ranks apply to the SSG, but only 20-25% pass the rigorous selection process. One of the tasks is to run in full combat gear 5 miles (about 8 km) over rough terrain in 40 minutes. Upon completion of 8 months training course fighters receive maroon beret and sign the document on enrollment in the SSG with their blood.

Signing documents in blood, our days

Sergeants and enlisted men serve in the SSG on on an ongoing basis, officers change every three years. Serving in special forces is considered a great career boost for an officer. Pakistani special forces regularly conduct joint exercises with special forces of the United States, China, Turkey, a number of Middle Eastern countries, and since 2016, Russia.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi visits the training center SSG in Cherat, 2018

In September 2018, Pakistani special forces are scheduled to take part in the international anti-terrorist exercises of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization "Peace Mission 2018" at the training ground in Chelyabinsk region- for the first time together with his colleagues from India.

Literature:

1. Cloughley, V. A History of the Pakistan Army: Wars and Insurrections / Brian Cloughley. - Carrel Books, 2016.
2. Conboy, K. Elite Forces of India and Pakistan / Kenneth Conboy. - Osprey Publishing, 1992.
3. Fair, S. Fighting to the end: the Pakistan Army’s way of war / Christine Fair. - Oxford University Press, 2014.
4. Musharraf, R. In the line of fire / Pervez Musharraf. - Simon & Schuster, 2006.
5. Sirrs, O. L. Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate: covert action and internal operation / Owen L. Sirrs. - Routledge, 2016.
6. Special Services Group: Inside Pakistan's Sharp Sword // Pakistan Defense, 2015.

A stork is a bird that belongs to the subclass Neopalatines, the order Cioriformes, the family Storkidae, the genus Stork (lat. Ciconia). This article describes this genus.

There are other genera of birds in the stork family, but they will be discussed in separate articles:

• Beaked storks (lat. Mycteria);
• Razzie storks (lat. Anastomus);
• Saddle-billed jabiru (lat. Ephippiorhynchus);
• Yabiru (lat. Jabiru);
• Marabou (lat. Leptoptilos).

Where does the word "stork" come from?

The origin of the word “stork” has not been established for certain, so there are many versions of its origin. Consonant words are found in ancient Sanskrit, Old Russian, German, Slavic languages. The most plausible version is the transformation of the German word “Heister”, which in some areas of Germany is the name of a magpie. Probably the word was transformed into “gaister”, and then into “stork”. It is difficult to find an analogy between the magpie and the stork; the only similarity between them is the color of the plumage. It can be assumed that this is the basis for the name of the stork. In different regions of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, there are different local names for this bird: busel, butol, busko, batan, blackguz, leleka, toad-eater, gister, botsun and others. In addition, the stork is called by human names: Ivan, Gritsko, Vasil, Yasha.

Stork – description, characteristics, photo. What do storks look like?

Storks are birds large sizes. Most close-up view in the genus Ciconia is the white stork. The body length of both the male and female is 110 cm, the wingspan reaches 220 cm, and the weight is 3.6 kg. One of the small species, the white-bellied stork, weighs about 1 kg and its body length is 73 cm.

The stork's beak is long, 2-3 times the length of its head, and has a conical shape. It can be straight or slightly bent towards the top (like the Far Eastern stork). At the base it is tall and massive, at the end it is sharp and closed tightly. The tongue is smooth, sharp and, compared to the beak, small. The nostril slits are very narrow, open directly into the stratum corneum, without depressions or grooves. The beak color of adults of most species is red. In the black-billed stork it is black. In young birds, the opposite is true: black-billed stork chicks have red or orange beaks, while chicks of other species have black beaks.

The iris of the eyes of different species of storks is red, brown or whitish. On the head there is no feathering on the chin, bridle and skin around the eyes. The bird's neck is moderately long. A characteristic position is when the neck is sharply curved back, the head is directed forward, and the beak rests among the fluffy feathers. In the area of ​​the crop, the feathers are long and drooping.

Storks have neck air sacs that are filled with exhaled air as they are connected to the nasal chambers. These bags are small, located under the skin and lie on the sides of the neck at the base of the head. The bag system creates an air gap between the skin and muscles.

The stork's wings are long, rounded, their apex is formed by 3-5 flight feathers. The inner wing feathers are long. When folded, they reach the length of the primary flight feathers.

In flight, storks soar above the ground. This becomes possible due to the special articulation of the bones of the shoulder girdle and the structure of the wing with an elongated forearm and a shorter shoulder. These features are characteristic of large soaring birds, including birds of prey. There is a claw on the wing on the first finger of the hand.

The tail of storks is of moderate length, straight, slightly rounded at the top. It consists of 12 tail feathers.

The hind limbs of birds are extremely elongated. The metatarsus is almost equal in length to the tibia. The articulation of the bones of the tibia and metatarsus is designed in such a way that the protrusion on the head of the tibia bone fits into a depression located on the head of the metatarsus, and a special ligament secures this connection, preventing the bones from slipping. The result is a strong position of the extended leg, holding the body purely mechanically, without the work of muscles. Thanks to this, the stork, having given its body balance, can stand on one leg for hours without getting tired at all. The structure of the legs determines some characteristic movements - slowness and springiness of the gait.

The toes of storks are relatively short. Along each one there is a narrow leathery rim. The front toes are connected at the base by a small leathery membrane, and the low-set rear toe serves for support on the ground. This structure of the fingers indicates that it is difficult for the stork to walk in swampy places, and it gravitates towards solid ground. The tibia is not feathered for more than a third of its length. The bare part of the tibia and the entire metatarsus are covered with small multifaceted plates. The claws are wide, rather flat, blunt.

The color of storks is not very varied and consists of black and white flowers. Black color can have a green or metallic tint. The coloring of young birds differs slightly from adults. There are no differences in the color of males and females, or changes in color depending on the time of year. Stork chicks have grayish fluff; adults have white or gray fluff.

Representatives of the genus Ciconia do not have a voice, as they lack a syrinx (the vocal organ of birds) and its muscles. Instead of screaming, the stork clicks its beak, that is, it hits its jaws against each other. White storks (lat. Ciconia ciconia) also know how to hiss. Black storks (lat. Ciconia nigra) rarely crack their beaks: their voice sounds like a cough or squeal. Stork chicks can croak, chirp, hiss and make guttural screams.

Storks molt

Storks molt occurs once a year and lasts very slowly. In any month of the year you can find fresh and emerging feathers, both cover and large. Migratory storks change feathers a little faster.

Where do storks live?

The stork family (which includes jabiru, marabou, saddle-billed yabiru, razini stork and beaked stork) is distributed almost throughout the world. The habitat of birds of the stork genus covers Europe, Russia, Asia, Africa and South America. Various species inhabit European countries from southern Scandinavia to the Mediterranean and from Atlantic coast to the border with Russia. In Russia, the habitat extends throughout the country, limited to the 61-63 parallel in the north. In Africa, which most researchers consider the ancestral home of storks, birds are distributed throughout almost the entire continent, with the exception of deserts. Storks live in South America, inhabiting the entire continent except the Andes mountain range. These birds live in many parts of Asia: Western, Eastern, Southern, Southeast, including the islands. IN selected places In this area, storks are often found, and in some areas they are quite rare.

Where do storks winter?

Stork living in northern latitudes- This migrant, which led a sedentary lifestyle before the Ice Age. Residential behavior still occurs today: for example, the black-billed stork, which lives in Japan, does not fly away for the winter. White-bellied storks, white-necked storks, American storks and Malayan woolly-necked storks also do not fly south, as they live in warm latitudes, where they are provided with food all year round. Seasonal migrations performed by white storks, black storks and Far Eastern storks (black-billed) living in Europe, Russia, and China.

The departure of white and black storks from European and Asian territories begins very early. Whites fly away in the last third of August or early September. Black storks migrate even earlier: from mid-August, as, for example, in some areas of Eastern Europe. In other regions, for example in the Amur region, it has been established that black storks fly away in the second ten days of September: for these birds this is quite late. In any case, by mid-October the nesting territories of storks are already empty.

Birds migrate during the day, high altitude without following a certain order. Storks fly mainly over land, reducing the sea sections of the route to a minimum. This is due to the fact that ascending air currents formed over land are important for soaring flight. Storks fly through the water only when they see the opposite shore. By spring the birds return.

Some black and white storks that settled in southern Africa do not return to their homeland, having organized sedentary colonies.

Below, in the description of the species, more detailed information is given about where storks fly and in which countries they spend the winter.

Storks eat exclusively animal food. Their food is varied, but mainly consists of small animals, which include:

• mammals: voles and other mouse-like rodents, speckled ground squirrels, young voles, weasels, stoats. In villages, some storks can hunt and;
• small chicks;
• amphibians and reptiles: , various , ( , );
• large terrestrial insects and their larvae - and other locusts, beetles, chafers, leaf wasps,;
• terrestrial and aquatic mollusks, crustaceans, worms;
• As for fish, some species of storks, for example white ones, rarely eat it. Black storks eat it much more often. And the black-billed stork feeds exclusively on fish.

Depending on the time of year, the diet of storks changes. When shallow bodies of water dry up and there are fewer amphibians, large orthoptera insects become food. Storks swallow their prey whole. Birds regurgitate indigestible remains (feathers, wool, scales, etc.) in the form of pellets.

By the way, storks have a remarkable ability to eat poisonous snakes without harming themselves. Apparently they are immune to poison.

Birds obtain food in open spaces: in steppes, vast river valleys and meadows, along river banks, swamps and other clearly visible places. Although storks are always visible, they themselves can notice danger from afar.

Storks, like all large birds, are very careful. During flights and overnight stays they stay together. The birds feed separately, but at the same time do not lose contact with their relatives.

How long do storks live?

The lifespan of storks depends on the species and habitat. White storks live in the wild for approximately 20-21 years (according to some sources, up to 33 years); in captivity, this figure may be higher. Far Eastern storks in captivity lived up to 48 years. The maximum lifespan of black storks in captivity is 31 years, while in natural conditions this figure is 18 years.

Types of storks, names and photos

The genus of storks (lat. Ciconia) includes the following species:

1. Ciconia abdimii (Lichtenstein, 1823) – white-bellied stork;
2. Ciconia boyciana (Swinhoe, 1873) – black-billed stork, Chinese stork, Far Eastern stork, Far Eastern white stork;
3. Ciconia ciconia (Linnaeus, 1758) – white stork:
   • Ciconia ciconia asiatica (Severtzov, 1873) – Turkestan white stork;
   • Ciconia ciconia ciconia (Linnaeus, 1758) – European white stork;
4. Ciconia episcopus (Boddaert, 1783) – white-necked stork:
   • Ciconia episcopus episcopus (Boddaert, 1783);
   • Ciconia episcopus microscelis (G. R. Gray, 1848);
   • Ciconia episcopus neglecta (Finsch, 1904);
5. Ciconia nigra (Linnaeus, 1758) – black stork;
6. Ciconia maguari (Gmelin, 1789) – American stork;
7. Ciconia stormi (W. Blasius, 1896) – Malayan woolly-necked stork.

Below is a description of the species.

• (lat.Ciconia ciconia) lives in some areas of Europe (from southern Sweden and Denmark to France and Portugal, in countries Eastern Europe), in Ukraine, in Russia (from Vologda region to Transcaucasia), in Central Asia and northwest Africa (from northern Morocco to northern Tunisia). According to their habitat, two subspecies of white storks are distinguished: European (lat. Ciconia ciconia ciconia) and Turkestan (lat. Ciconia ciconia asiatica). The Turkestan subspecies is somewhat larger than the European one and is found in Central Asia and some areas of Transcaucasia.

The body of white storks is white, which is reflected in the name. Only the feathers at the ends of the wings are black, and until the bird spreads them, it seems that the entire lower body is black. This is where it came from popular name birds - blackgut. The stork's beak and legs are red. The chicks have black beaks. The bare skin near the eyes and beak is red or black. The iris of the eyes is dark brown or reddish. The dimensions of the wing are 55-63 cm, the tail is 21.5-26 cm, the metatarsus is 17-23.5 cm, the beak is 14-20 cm. The body length can reach 1.02 m. The wingspan is 1.95-2. 05m. The white stork weighs 3.5-4.4 kg. Females are smaller than males.

White storks, which live in western and eastern parts Europe, fly south in different ways. Storks nesting west of the Elbe fly to the Strait of Gibraltar and cross it in the very bottleneck. Having gained altitude over Spain, they plan to Africa. There they partially remain in the west, and partially cross the Sahara, equatorial forests and stop in South Africa. Storks nesting east of the Elbe fly to the Bosphorus, flying around the Mediterranean Sea through Syria, Israel, crossing the north of the Red Sea, Egypt, flying along the Nile Valley and further to South Africa. The Turkestan subspecies of white stork mainly winters in India, Ceylon, but some individuals wait out the winter in the Syr Darya region in Central Asia and in the Talysh Mountains region in Transcaucasia.

White storks settle near human habitation, as it is convenient for them to build nests on “man-made hills.” People themselves often “help” birds in construction, making a stork’s nest with their own hands or creating a base for it: wheels or special reinforced platforms are placed on poles, trees or outbuildings, on which the birds place their future nest.

• (lat.Ciconia nigra) – a species that avoids people. Its habitat is the vast expanses of Eurasia: from Scandinavia and Iberian Peninsula to the Far Eastern regions. The northern border of distribution reaches the 61st and 63rd parallels, the southern one passes through the Balkans, Crimea, Transcaucasia, Iran, Central Asia, Mongolia, central China. The black stork winters on the African continent, in India and China. In Africa, birds fly no further than the equator. True, in the south of the mainland individuals nest, which in all likelihood got there during migrations and stayed forever.

The color of this bird species is predominantly black, with the black plumage tinged with green, bronze or purple. White feathers grow only on the lower body, on the back of the chest and in the axillary areas. The bird's beak is slightly slanted upward. The legs, beak and skin around the eyes are red. The iris of the eye is brown. Juveniles have white plumage, with the legs and beak of the young being grey-green. The weight of a black stork does not exceed 3 kg, the body can reach a length of 1 meter. The length of the wing varies from 52 to 61 cm, the length of the metatarsus is 18-20 cm, the tail grows to 19-25 cm, and the length of the beak reaches 16-19.5 cm. The wingspan of the bird is 1.5-2 meters.

The black stork lives in dense forests, islands among swamps and similar inaccessible areas. It makes nests on the side branches of tall trees, 1.5-2 m from the trunk. They consist of branches of different thicknesses, glued together with earth and turf. In treeless areas and mountains, the bird chooses rocks, cliffs, etc. for housing. A pair of storks always nests separately from their relatives. Nests are usually located at a distance of up to 6 km from each other. In some places, for example, Eastern Transcaucasia, the distance between them is reduced to 1 km, and sometimes there are even 2 nests on one tree.

There are from 3 to 5 eggs in a clutch, which are somewhat smaller than those of the white stork. Storks are covered with white or gray down, and their beak is orange at the base and greenish-yellow at the tip. First, the black stork cubs lie down, then sit in the nest, and only after 35-40 days they begin to stand on their feet. Young storks fly out of the nest 64-65 days after birth. Unlike other species, black storks can scream. They pronounce high and low sounds similar to “chi-li”. Birds' beaks chatter much less frequently and more quietly than white storks.

• White-bellied stork(lat.Ciconia abdimii) is an African species of stork that lives from Ethiopia to South Africa.

One of the smallest storks, reaching 73 cm in length. The mass of the bird is 1 kg. The predominant color is black, only the chest and underwings are white. The beak, unlike most species, is gray. The legs are traditionally red. Distinctive feature white-bellied stork - blue skin around the eyes during the mating season. The eyes themselves have a red tint. Females are smaller than males. They lay 2-3 eggs.

• White-necked stork(lat.Ciconia episcopus) has 3 subspecies:
  • Ciconia episcopus episcopus lives on the Indian subcontinents, Indochina and the Philippine Islands;
  • Ciconia episcopus microscelis is found in Uganda and Kenya, countries of tropical Africa;
  • Ciconia episcopus neglecta is a resident of the island of Java and the islands lying on the border of the Asian and Australian biogeographic zones.

The body length of storks varies from 80 to 90 cm. The back of the head, neck and upper part The birds' breasts are white and fluffy. The feathers on the underbelly and tail are white. The head is black on top, as if wearing a cap. The wings and upper body are black, the shoulders have reddish tints, and the ends of the wings are covered with a greenish tint. White-necked storks live in groups or pairs near water.

• Malayan woolly-necked stork(lat.Ciconia stormi) - a very rare species on the verge of extinction. There are between 400 and 500 individuals in the world. The size of the bird is small: from 75 to 91 cm. The color is predominantly black. The neck is white. The stork's head is crowned with a black cap. Unfeathered scalp has orange tint, and around the eyes - yellow. The beak and legs are red.

Malayan woolly-necked storks live on some islands of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei. Live alone or in small groups, settle near freshwater bodies of water surrounded by forest.

• American stork(lat.Ciconia maguari) - representative of the New World. Lives in South America.

It is similar to a white stork in size and appearance. Differences: black tail, red-orange skin around the eyes, gray at the base and bluish at the end beak and white irises. Stork chicks are born white, darken with age, and then acquire the parental color. The bird's body length reaches 90 cm, its wingspan is 120 cm, and the stork weighs 3.5 kg. It builds nests low: in bushes, on low trees and even on the ground, but they are always surrounded by water.

• Black-billed stork (lat.Ciconia boyciana) - a species that has many names: Amur stork, Chinese stork, Far Eastern or Far Eastern white stork. Previously, this species was considered a subspecies of the white stork. But, unlike the white one, the black-billed stork has a longer, noticeably sloping black beak, red legs and frenulum, a red throat sac, a whitish iris, and at the ends of some black feathers there is a silver-gray coating.

Amur stork chicks have orange-red beaks. In young individuals, the black color is replaced by brown. The size of the bird is slightly larger than its relatives: wing length - 62-67 cm, beak - 19.5-26 cm, body length - up to 1.15 m, the stork weighs up to 5.5 kg. Far Eastern storks feed exclusively on fish, such as loaches.

All names of the bird indicate its habitat: the Far East (Amur region, Primorye, Ussuri region), northern China. In addition, this species is found in Japan and Korea. Basically, black-billed storks winter in southern China, on the island of Taiwan and in the Hong Kong area. Some flocks migrate for the winter to North Korea, South Korea, Japan, sometimes reaching the Philippines, Myanmar, Bangladesh and the northeastern regions of India. In Japan, birds live in both summer and winter, without flying south during the cold season. The black-billed stork does not settle near humans, preferring to nest in tall trees in forests. Nests can be located both high and on the lower branches. They are so heavy that sometimes the branches cannot bear the weight and break off, causing the nests to fall to the ground. There are 3-5 eggs in a clutch.

The Far Eastern stork is a rare species protected in Russia, Japan and China. It is listed in the Red Book of Russia, China and Korea, as well as in the International Red Book. There are no more than 3,000 individuals in nature.

“Black Storks” is a sabotage and fighter elite detachment of the Afghan Mujahideen, the leader of which, according to various sources, was Amir Khattab, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Osama bin Laden. According to other sources, Pakistani special forces. According to the third version, “Black Storks” are those people who committed a crime before Allah: they killed, stole, etc. They had to atone for their guilt before Allah only with the blood of infidels.
There was information that among the “storks” there were people of European appearance with punk hairstyles who traveled in Isuzu jeeps. Each “stork” simultaneously performed the duties of a radio operator, sniper, miner, etc. In addition, the fighters of this special unit, created to carry out sabotage operations, owned almost all types of small arms.

"Black Storks" - a special forces unit, was created during the Afghan War of 1979-1989. by a number of intelligence services of Pakistan and other interested countries from among the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign mercenaries. Members of the “Black Storks” were well-trained military specialists, professionally proficient in various types of weapons, communications equipment, and knowledge of topographic maps. They knew the terrain well and were unpretentious in everyday life.
They were based mainly in the hard-to-reach provinces of the Afghan highlands bordering Pakistan and Iran, at the bases and fortified areas of the Afghan Mujahideen. They took an active part in organizing ambushes on units of Soviet troops. A number of such clashes became a difficult page in the history of the Afghan war:

2. The death of the Maravar company in the province of Kunar of the 1st company of the 334th special forces detachment of the 15th ObrSpN GRU General Staff - April 21, 1985.

3. Battle of the 4th company of the 149th motorized rifle regiment near the village of Konyak in Kunar province - May 25, 1985.

5. Battle at height 3234 near the village of Alikheil in Paktia province in January 1988.

The “Black Storks” squad was equipped with a special black uniform, with stripes of this special. divisions. - With rare exceptions (in the person of instructors), all members of the “Black Storks” were adherents of fundamental Islam. Mostly natives of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
Very often, during an intense battle, flaunting their own fearlessness, the “Black Storks” stood up to their full height in order to fire a shell from a grenade launcher, or fire a long burst. By this action, as well as by reading suras from the Holy Koran over a horn loudspeaker during the battle, the “storks” hoped to demoralize and break the morale of the Soviet soldiers. Special bases for the professional training of “Black Storks” were located mainly in Pakistan and Iran.

Throughout the entire period of stay of the limited contingent in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, not a single documented case of the destruction of the “Black Storks” was recorded...